Setting: The first day back at Degrassi since Vegas Night!
:O

Disclaimer: I do not own Degrassi! If I did, EClare would've had 20+ little Eli's by now. Okay, not really, but you get the point.

"Again the burden of losing rests upon my shoulders..."

It would be seriously unnatural and unhealthy for any boy (or anybody in general) to be locked away in their bedroom for two weeks straight, but then again, Eli Goldsworthy was not your normal teenage boy. He was a teen with an odd preference for black instead of white, blazers instead of cardigans, vinyls instead of CDs, and anything and everything in between.

Therefore, it was so easily foreseen that he would fall quickly (yet with a slight blend of difficulty, might I add) into the trap of Clare Edwards' lovely auburn curls. Damn him, just damnit it all to hell.

He'd royally screwed things over before being with the girl a whole damn day, and he had a lot left to learn about Ms. Edwards. She would show him, this he was sure of.

Perhaps this whole situation wasn't entirely all his fault. I mean, in his defense, any sane person would have a hell of a hard time concentrating while breathing in the faint scent of vanilla, or worse, looking into those bright cerulean eyes. Thus, he'd concluded his stupidity with Mark Fitzgerald was more than justified.

Clare was the light in the vast dark tunnel that was his life, and the only person in his world who actually gave a damn and forcefully, and unfortunately, gave him a conscience. He refused the thought of losing her.

Eli Goldsworthy sighed. No wonder Dawes had called him wordy.

But even with the circumstances, something felt different about him today. It was his first day back to Degrassi since that treacherous night where Fitz had pointed a knife at him. It seemed logical for him to believe the only thing he could do was live through it instead of dreading it and being miserable. He only guessed Clare's optimism on life was rubbing off on him.

Eli stepped outside of his house in hopes for a peaceful morning. Sure, he'd seen his better days, especially ones that didn't involve him wearing a grotesquely orange polo and nerdy khakis to school. Yet he couldn't help this feeling he had lurching in his stomach. His gut told him things would be different, and this time around he actually saw it best to listen to what screamed at him was "right". Though, he did have trouble holding back a scoff at his new found level of maturity.

Off to school he went, this time on foot deciding confidently that he would thoroughly enjoy the beautiful fall scenery. Dead leaves were still very much rich with warm tones. The sky was as bright as ever, and a perfect soft gust was blowing his hair around. It was a great start for the day!

And when he reached the steps of Degrassi, suddenly breathing became that much easier and a genuine smile had easily swept onto his face.

He didn't have the pressures of life weighing him down, nor did he have nightmares waking him back up into the miserable reality that was his life.

For once in his so far short yet painful life, he was utilizing optimism. The burden of losing had been briefly, if not permanently, lifted off of his shoulders.

It was then he realized why,

for he was now looking hard into the astonishing blue eyes that belonged Clare Edwards.

-And he knew at that moment,
at that simple gesture,
everything would be perfect again.

Author's notes:

Hi everyone! I'm Lazerlicious, and like most people on this section of the site, I'm a big Eclare fan! Yes, I said it, ECLARE!
I just love me an optimistic Eli so I couldn't resist writing this!
Review?

The quote from the summary comes from "Ode to Solitude" by HIM.
The quote at the top comes from a song called "Buried Alive by Love" by HIM - and inspired me to write this one-shot. Check it out, they're a GREAT band!
Update: 6/15/11, did some editing.